


Night terror

by kittybenzedrine



Series: Timelines [27]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Comfort, F/M, Nightmares
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-09
Updated: 2018-03-09
Packaged: 2019-03-28 14:00:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13905519
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kittybenzedrine/pseuds/kittybenzedrine
Summary: Renee keeps having nightmares. Leo doesn't ask her about it until it becomes a problem._____All pieces of the Timelines series are standalones and can be read without context.





	Night terror

**Author's Note:**

> Rare one from Leo's POV

Renee's been having nightmares, lately. Leo knows as much, he sleeps next to her every night he's home. He awakens often to her whimpering, thrashing, tossing and turning all throughout the night. She never speaks of it, but the shake of the dreams always seems to follow her into the waking world.

He isn't going to press her for it. If she wanted him to know, she would have told him by now. Renee is a woman who likes to chatter, and if she doesn't feel the need to share with him what's troubling her dreams, then Leo isn't going to ask. It's not affecting her too badly, it seems.

Except it is, and after nearly a month of her dreaming, he's pulled awake by a gutteral scream from next to him.

Leo's heart is racing the moment he comes to, lip curled into a snarl, and the knife under his pillow is gripped in his hand. For once in his life, he's a little thankful for his hesitance and releases the knife as Renee climbs into his lap under the covers. She sobbing into his shoulder, trembling and reeking of terror and grief while holding onto him with her shaking grip. Hesitantly, Leo curls his arms around her, a little angry from being woken up that way, and discomforted that he almost killed her.

He's never seen her like this before. Renee crying is a rare thing, but he's witnessed it, as well as her shaking off fear and sadness. He's seen a lot from her. The volatile temper, the bloodlust from a good fight, the drunken giddiness. He's never seen _this_.

There's snot and tears on his shoulder, and he's certain her nails are going to leave imprints in his skin. He lets her hyperventilate instead of comforting her, knowing that the head rush from over oxygenation will probably make her calm down faster. But there crying itself, he doesn't know what to do about that.

She does calm down after a while, curling one hand into his hair to pull his head against her own. Leo runs a hand up and down her back in as much of a soothing way as he can manage. The crying has stopped, other than the occasional faint sniffle and shudder, but the sweet smells of her grief and fear are still filling his nose just as strong as when she first awoke.

"So do you want to tell me what the hell that was all about?" he asks, smoothing his other hand up her bare thigh.

"Nightmare," Renee murmurs into his skin. She's overly warm against him, though her lashes are cold and wet where she has her face resting on his shoulder.

Leo resists the urge to scoff at her. "That much is apparent. What I want to know is what exactly was so bad that it made you wake up screaming? I nearly killed you on pure instinct, Renee."

"I keep dreaming about you dying." Her voice cracks at the end, the sound tightening like she's about to start tearing back up.

He doesn't say anything, doesn't press until he's absolutely certain that she's not going to start bawling again. Leaning back against the headboard, he pulls the blankets up around the middle of her back, trying to trap in some warmth before snaking his hands under the covers to rest on her thighs. His eyes unfocus into the dark of the bedroom.

"I've waited and given you the chance to talk about it on your own, but now it's becoming a problem for the both of us. Talk about it."

She does. Most of the dreams have been pretty straightforward, him taken out during battle or caught by surprise and ended that way. Tonight's was worse, apparently. The dream version of himself was tortured, made to suffer greatly an all she could do was sit back and watch. Her screaming coincided with his very swift, but brutal end.

Renee's never been known to have prophetic visions or dreams, so he isn't concerned. Frankly, he doesn't think there's much in this world that can actually kill him without him letting it, but he doesn't say that to her. She probably already feels stupid enough about it. In all actuality, of the two of them, she's more likely to die first.

There are a great many things he could say to her right now, so he decides to say nothing at all. She needs comfort, not sarcasm and snide remarks.

Leo keeps his hands on her, touches her legs and her back, runs his fingers though her hair until the tangles become impossible to traverse. He presses his lips to what he can reach of her. Her ear, her cheek, the corner of her closed eye. Renee holds onto him like a lifeline. 

When she's ready, she untangles herself from him to lie back down. He's kind enough to tuck her in, and when she settles, he presses his very much alive self to her side as reassurance for when she gets back to sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Just wanted to put out something short and sweet because it's been like a month since I last released any content
> 
> I'm always very appreciative of your comments and kudos, so don't be shy about leaving either of those!
> 
> I have [my blog](http://iwillpooponthefloor.tumblr.com) on tumblr, if you'd like to check that out.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
